23-year-old two-way Japanese superstar Shohei Otani will be posted by the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, the team announced on Friday, paving the way for him to be signed by a major league team.
Once Otani is posted, teams will get four days to bid on him with their international signing bonus pool.
Due to his age (under 25) and the terms of MLB's collective bargaining agreement, what the 30 major league teams can offer him ranges between $10,000 (Rockies), and $3.35 million (Rangers).
However, because Otani is intent on leaving Japan now, likely leaving hundreds of millions of dollars on the table, the belief is that the main factor regarding where he signs will not be money.